The Demographics of New York City’s Jewish Population

The New York Times has an article about the most recent demographic survey of New York’s Jewish population. Here are a few statements from the article.

After decades of decline, the Jewish population of New York City is growing again, increasing to nearly 1.1 million, fueled by the “explosive” growth of the Hasidic and other Orthodox communities, a new study has found.

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Now, 40 percent of Jews in the city identify themselves as Orthodox, an increase from 33 percent in 2002; 74 percent of all Jewish children in the city are Orthodox.

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UJA-Federation, a 90-year-old philanthropic organization, conducts the study roughly once a decade as a way of focusing its assistance in the eight counties (which includes the five in New York City) it serves. The 2002 study found that the Jewish population of the city dipped below one million for the first time in a century, which was less than half the two million peak of the 1950s. Jews who moved out of the city seemed to stay in the region’s suburbs. But the latest study, which will be released on Tuesday, showed that the city’s Jewish population was reversing course and expanding. With 316,000 Jews on Long Island and 136,000 in Westchester, the eight counties together were home to 1.54 million Jews, a 10 percent increase since 2002. One factor contributing to the increase, the study found, is that Jews, like other Americans, are living longer. The number of Jews ages 75 and older rose to 198,000 from 153,000.

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The rate of intermarriage remains at roughly 22 percent for all couples, but it is growing among the non-Orthodox. Between 2006 and 2011, the study found, one out of two marriages in which one partner was a non-Orthodox Jew was to a person who was not Jewish and did not convert to Judaism.